2009 World Cruise – There were gale force winds during the night that the Captain thought may prevent our stop in Huatulco, but, thankfully, the sea calmed in the early morning.  Our suite is on the ninth passenger deck and there are two crew and cargo decks below that.  John told me that the waves were crashing over our balcony railing at 3 am.  I slept right through it all – I find that rocking ships make good cradles.

Huatulco, like Cancun on the Atlantic side, is a created resort area.  In 1984 the government agency dedicated to the development of tourism in Mexico, acquired 21,000 hectares of land along the Pacific coast.  There are 36 white sand beaches in the coves and bays that stretch along the rugged coastline.  Most of the area belongs to the Huatulco National Park where populated areas are connected to ecologically-minded ‘green zones.’   The result is one of the cleanest developments in Mexico.  The Park received the Green Globe certification in 2006, the first in America to do so, and third in the world.

There are now over people 16,000 people living and working here to staff the resorts and hotels, shops, and related tourist businesses.  Over the next 15-20 years that number is expected to rise to 300,000.  I am glad we were there before that happened. It was very hot, very dry, but beautiful with the water and the pristine white buildings.

We were introduced to the tequila-making process.                                                                                 The Chapel at La Crucesita. Pelicans, rowboats and the MS Rotterdam in Huatulco Bay. We really liked Huatulco and have it on our list of places to visit again someday.